but now the switch to a smaller venue could leave thousands of supporters out. e preside will now speak at the time warner center, the same vene knew where the first lady urged voters to stick with her husband because she says he knows what it's like to struggle. >> here, the determination in his voice as he tells me, you won't believe what these folks are going through, michelle. it's not right. we've got to keep working to fix this. we've got so much more to do. and the first lady also talked about her passion for her husband, parenting, and policy that is affects the lives of women. >> he believes that women are more than capable of making our own choices about our bodies and our health care. that's what my husband stands for. and, of course, tonight, former president bill clinton steps into the spotlight with a primetime speech aimed at helping president obama win over groups he is struggling with

currently, which include white working class men. nbc news white house correspondent kristen welker joins us live from charlotte. the president expected to land within the hour. i understand we have more information what he said to the first lady following her speech. >> that's right, tamron. good afternoon to you. president obama called the first lady right after she finished her speech, told her how proud he was of her, told her what a proud moment it was for the country. the first lady said that that really meant a lot to her, that he placed that phone call. as you know, president obama said he might get misty. i'm trying to figure out if that actually happened. but there is a lot of energy, a lot of excitement here in the wake of her speech last night. one campaign aide said that the whole night was really a already. they're getting ready for tonight. i'm going to let the camera pan off so you can see what's going on right now. folks on stage trying to plan out exactly how this will go. exactly how the stage will be set. as you know, the keynote speaker tonight former president bill

clinton. not only will he deliver the keynote address, he will also be placing president obama's name in nomination. this is the first time that a former president will play this type of a role. it's a pretty big deal, a historic moment that is going to unfold this evening. so what's the president going to talk about? i am told by advisers he's going to try to draw a link between some of the challenges president obama is facing right now and some of the challenges that he faceded back in the '90s when he had to work with republicans who wanted to slash government programs, keep taxes low. he's going to argue that he resisted that and as a result, the country added 23 million new jobs, experienced record surpluses. i am told that the former president has been working for weeks with the obama team on his speech. so it is something that they are all sort of working on together. of course, this is an important moment in the relationship between these two leaders. remember, this was very

different back in 2008 when president clinton spoke in the wake of that bruising battle between his wife, of course, and president obama. now, president obama reached out to the former president and asked tore his help so president clinton has really become one of president obama's key advisers. of course, you mentioned he is also going to play a big role in terms of reaching out to white working class voters. >> thank you. the consensus is pretty much clear. first lady michelle obama delivered a stellar speech. a few headlines to show you. "the washington post" writes michelle obama's speech politically masterful. politico.com asked what many people are wondering. what if michelle ran for office. the "huffington post" laid it out with this headline. simply said, top that, barack. let me bring in allison samuels, syndicated radio talk show host, michael smerconish and chip

saltsman, republican strategist and former huckabee campaign manager. allison, you've written this book about michelle obama, what would michelle do. last night she the did perhaps what many expected but took it to a whole other level. >> what would michelle do? she would look fabulous doing whatever she does. that's what she did in her speech. she reminded people who her husband really is and that he hadn't changed from that community activist that started in chicago who has a genuine concern for people's well-being. what she showed is she still had the confidence in him to make sure the country gets where he needs to go. he needs four more years. she reminded the country that's what the country needs to give him. >> many people said the first lady was referring to governor romney. let me play it. >> he's the same man hop started his career by turning down high-paying jobs and instead working in struggling neighborhoods where a see plant had shut down, fighting to

rebuild those communities and get folks back to work. because for bra rack, success isn't about how much money you make. it's about the difference you make in people's lives. >> allison, that remark talk about the remark regarding the policy of a woman's right to choose and women's health, did you expect her speech to be as direct as it was in the political tone? >> i did because michelle is straightforward. i think that's one of the things that people in america love about her. that's why her approval rating is so high. people know they get the straight story from her. she knew she needed to sell her husband, not just her husband but on barack the president. she had to be direct about the issues facing women and can speak the way many other women couldn't during the republican convention. >> michael, that headline from the "washington post" both apolitical and politically masterful. how did you see the speech? >> i thought it was a 10. i thought she was extraordinary.

i also gave ann romney very high remarks. i think each of these women were able to humanize their husbands in a way that's desperate lit needed. mitt romney is stiff. barack obama can be perceived as being aloof. the spouse can say things about the candidate that they can't say themselves. she looked good. she had poise. her delivery was extraordinaire. and the content was great. it was a 10. >> shauna, part of the speech was directed at women. when have you michelle obama saying mom in chief and talking about women's issues, we knew this going in. that this was going to be a big night for reaching out to those women who may be uncertain dealing with this economy and other social issues. do you believe that she was as direct as needed regarding some of these hot button issues when you have members of congress referring to legitimate rape and such in this world that we live in? >> yeah, she did a phenomenal job speaking to, i think, the real concerns that real women face in this country and

relating to them on that level. i reacted to it that way personally and i think a lot of other women did, too. it did provide a very stark contrast to what we saw at the republican convention, including with ann romney's speech. with all due respect, it was a nice speech but condescending. >> a lot of people discussed this. is it fair tore compare ann romney's speech to michelle obama's speech in that these are individual women. we can't tell them their journey. it's our place to listen. but is it fair to try to compare them here? >> yeah, i think it is fair. it's fair to think about hire to look at her speech in the context of a larger republican convention which did, i think, frankly a terrible job of addressing what women needed to hear from them in order to win back any amount of the vote that they've managed to lose over the last few months with their related attacks both on policy and a cultural level. >> chip. >> go ahead, i'm sorry.

>>. you know, she does have a different life story. i think that's part of the point, too. she's trying to relate to real women's problems but doing it from an ivory tower and it's obvious. >> she would say, of course, her struggle with ms, raising her children would point that life is not an ivory tower as you put it when you are struggling certainly with a debilitating illness. with that said, chip, i want to play what congressman ryan said a short time ago regarding the big speech tonight. >> sorry, chip. bottom line, he says we're going to hear from president clinton noon the charlotte. my guess is we will get a great rendition of how good things were in the '90s, but we're not going to hear much about how things have been in the last four years. chip, you going to pick up from there? >> i think what the president will try to do, president clinton is going to try to do is

talk about how things are tough now but things were tough back in the '90s. the programs i put in place helped such a great economy. that's what barack obama is doing. i think he's going to trial to link those two up. there was a balanced budget in the '90s. we did pay down half a trillion dollars in debt. there was a lot of good things going on. bill clinton worked with the republican congress to get those things done like welfare reform and barack obama doesn't want to work with the house republicans. he can barely talk to the speaker. >> that's not a fair statement, chip. reverend al sharpton and many others pointed out the night that president obama was being -- as a inauguration, paul ryan and others were meeting, do you know about this? do you know what i'm referring to that there was a meeting which included high-ranking republicans who together joined forces and agreed that they would block anything. remember the waterloo statement? do you recall any of these things, chip. >> all i'm saying is barack

obama has not built up a working relationship with republican leaders in the house. ronald reagan did that with tip o'neill. clinton did that with bob dole and newt gingrich. barack obama went for it will by himself over the first two years. he has had no interest in working with the house republicans. if you want to get stuff done, you've got to work with the opposition. if you get all the republicans votes, you can't get anything done. if you get all the democratic votes you can't get anything done. you have to work together. barack obama has not done that. >> michael, what is your response to chip's assertion that the president has not done anything to reach out to house republicans, including paul ryan who talks about simpson-bowles but also rejected at the same time pointed out by matt lauer during an interview this week on the today show in which congressman rhine could not give an adequate teens that i feel. >> when you have the chief republican mouthpiece is openly saying we want him to fail, when you reflect on mitch mcconnell's

comments about the chief objective is to make sure that barack obama isn't re-elected, i think their record is very, very clear. the answer to your question is, bill clinton is uniquely qualified tonight to address fiscal stability. this is a guy who over the years has earned mudities from the right, from conservatives. we associate him with budget surpluses and so he can provide a historic reference for what happened in the '90s and whether he believes barack obama is on than same path. it has the potential of being a very powerful moment. and so too does elizabeth warren's 12-minute statement tonight. i'm anxious to see if she's going to defend we did build that or you didn't build that or however it's being referenced. >> chip, michael brings up historic reference. october 2010, mish mcconnell said his number one priority was what, chip, do you remember. >> i think what mitch mcconnell has done is right. >> he said it was to defeat

barack obama. >> look, i understand, tamron. you're talking about bill clinton was successful because he worked with republicans in the house and senate to work for the betterment of the country. i have not seen this out of this president. >> let me talk to you about this, michael, the white male vote. right now 40% president obama. mitt romney 53%. what, if anything, does bill clinton bring to the conversation here and it's i always feel a tad bit unconservatismable when you say white voter and a former president who is white. surely they're not looking to bill clinton to relate just on race. this has to be deeper i hope than that. >> tamron, it's a natural constituency for talk radio. i think i know a little bit about what these folksing are most concerned about. and what i hear through these head sets most often is the debt. they want to talk about the debt. they want to know there's a path out of where we are with the spending right now.

and that's where i think bill clinton can be invaluable depending on what he says. >> thank you all. chip, michael as well, shauna, allison. i appreciate it. i'll see all four of you soon. coming up, selling the american dream. >> barack and i were both raised by family who's didn't have much.in the way of money or material possessions but who had given us something far more valuable. their unconditional love. >> we will compare the two the different versions of the so-called american dream that we heard at the dnc so far. first reid says the message that the rnc focused on the american dream to become an entrepreneur. how each party is trying to sell its version with new faces and familiar ones like those on the screen. plus, more on the breaking news regarding the change of venue for the president's speech tomorrow. what the obama camp is saying regarding the rumors that the location was changed because they could not fill that stadium. first, the first lady's speech set the twitter sphere on fire

last night. there were more than 28,000 tweets per minute at the end of the first lady's remarks. that is almost double the number of tweets after governor romney's acceptance speech last week. you can join our conversation on twitter, that's my twitter page @tamronhall. hey. hey eddie. i brought your stuff. you don't have to do this. yes i do. i want you to keep this. it'd be weird. take care. you too. [ sighs ] so how did it go? he's upset. [ male announcer ] spend less time at gas stations. with best in class fuel economy. it's our most innovative altima ever. ♪ anyone have occasional constipation, diarrhea, gas, bloating? yeah. one phillips' colon health probiotic cap each day

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>> the ohlde versity question which i think everyone's impressed with what we're seeing on the stage and to a lesser degree what you were saying in the audience but to the credit of that party, they had very prominent hispanics and african memories speaking, as well. >> that's tom brokaw on diversity in america and its effect on politics and the

conventions, both the rnc and dnc. last night it became clear both parties are pushing what our first read team describes as different versions of the american dream. first read says points out republicans are selling the american dream that focused on business and entrepreneurship while democrats, their version of the american dream focuses on giving the next generation a better xans. where do they meet or perhaps are they even the same? joining me reporter aaron carmone as well as ari melber. i like seeing you both together. the two different versions of the american dream as first read pointed out. don't both parties when you boil it down have the same american dream, or is it different? >> i think it is different particularly on follow through. i was impressed in tampa there were a lot of bright young stars on the republican sthij headline immigrant histories but you don't have a party there that

supports a path to citizenship or the d.r.e.a.m. act. they talked about middle class tax cuts but you only have one tax plan i think from obama that actually does something for people in the middle brackets instead of putting more emphasis on millionaires. the other thing that jumped out from last night was a theory. i think the theory of the democratic message is that community organizer beats investment banker. that borrowing money to go to college or law school beats borrowing money to take over distressed companies. there are contrasts that go to biography and the platform. >> in governor romney's speech, business and growing jobs, he said, is about taking risks. sometimes failing, sometimes succeeding but always striving. the first lady talked about barack and i were both raised by family who's didn't have much in the way of money and material possessions but who had given us something far more valuable. regarding the first lady's words, wa we hear from bill blont as well as brez obama on

thursday, will they have to try to re-establish this we built it from the president? it's been taken out of context but the bumper sticker as we referred to it is certainly different when you talk to republicans and conservatives over what he said. is it the responsibility of the party with the this platform to better define what the president meant there? >> ari? >> we're back. i thought it was her turn. sorry. the we build this part has become a really rich rhetorical sound bite for republicans. whether or not they care about the facts. i do think to your point, bill clinton is a great messenger to talk about the middle class and to talk about the debt. earlier in your show, you and michael were talking about the kerns out there about the debt. the problem for the republicans is the facts. they ran up the debt under george w. bush to the tune of $6 trillion and paul ryan voted for 90% of those debt hikes. and bill clinton can talk about the fact that when he left the store, when he left them this charge, there was a surplus.

i think he can be a credible messenger and say look, they built the debt. we're about building basically a better tax structure and better investment structure and a jobs act for building real things in america erin, part of the conversation in the message is the visual of the messenger which is what tom brokaw knocked my socks off this morning the way he articulated with the dnc and the rp nc. i want to the play julio castro's remarks about the american dream yesterday. okay. we've run into some kind of technical problem here even though we're in studio. i apologize to our audience. we heard the remarks from marco rubio about his family and their dream, not comparing their speeches because of their background or their ethnicity. the bottom line tom brokaw was saying this is a different vision, a different visual for these conventions.

>> well, what's interesting is you have a lot of compelling stories, but again the real question is, how do these compelling stories connect to number one are they authentic. in many cases they are. we also saul mitt romney and ann romney trying to reconfigure their upper middle class upbringing as a story of struggle. they didn't mention selling of stock options. what can you offer people there will behind you? last week we heard a lot at the republican national convention about i built that. that sounds like a great story of individual achievement, but this week we've heard a part of i am part of a movement of people who worked on this. michelle obama located her story. she's the daughter of a city pump operator. julian castro talked about how his grandmother worked sewed hard. so they're connecting this with a real set of government policies that created middle class that, offered reproductive freedom for women, equality for african-americanand a path to citizenship.

>> conservative critics who certainly watched the first lady's speech, some of them feel they heard the government will the help you. we know this attack line that's come out regarding the president making changes to welfare, which was inaccurate and wrong. is still out there, as well. governor romney brought up the story of steve jobs as if to present it of someone who built it himself, never mind any help, assistance or work from the other people who were there at the time when the he built this brand. that is an amazing american brand. so the bottom line is, i guess the core of my question is, with this american dream with, both sides presenting, our country's split on which side or which vision they think relates to them it, erin. >> i think michelle obama talked a lot about hard work. i don't think she was talking at all about the government helping. helping people who are helping themselves really. all week we've been hearing the democratic party return to a sort of base strategy where they talk about what they're standing for, which progressives should

be cheering. yes, they did talk about government programs helping people and their own hard work, the adversity that they faced. lily ledbetter worked hard in that plant, didn't know she was being discriminated against. we're talking about an affirmative defense of the set of policies that they have for theoretically the same ends, which is people on the stage that look like america, but what policies are going to get not only people on the stage but people in the audience and people in the middle class moving and working. >> tamron, just on that point, conventions have to be about community. they're not just about the people on the stage. they're about the people in the hall, about the delegates, people who work out and do hours of phone banking and door knocking and uploading data on their iphones to the campaign. they come here and get to talk to the politicians that pur. or the to represent them. when your message is about community and you have a large outpouring of people there, there's a synergy there. >> thank you both. and today's "news nation" gut check. we're going back to the first

lady's speech. >> i thought she just hit it out of the park. i said it was the best speech, period. >> that was, of course, n kwas, chairman michael steele. do you think it was the best speech ever given by a first lady? plus, what could be a big worry for democrats as president clinton goes head to head with the nfl season opener. how about them cowboys? all right, it's just one of the things we thought you should know. but that doesn't mean we should be penalized for it. that's why liberty mutual insurance policies come standard with accident forgiveness, if you qualify. learn more at libertymutual.com.

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stage. the gunfire rang out. the cbc reports the 62-year-old man now in custody shout the english are waking up as he was being dragged away. up next on "news nation" -- >> the only thing standing in the way of women being denied this access to health care is them having a president in office, having a majority. that's why this election really matters. >> david gregory sits down with sandra fluke. more of his interview next. plus, more on tonight's headliners. elizabeth warren and former president bill clinton. be sure to check out our "news nation" tumbler page for behind the scenes pictures at "news nation."com. that's an interesting scene today behind the scenes. you can't believe you lost. when what you just bought, just broke. or when you have a little trouble a long way from home...

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>> the first lady last night seeking to reassure voters that president obama understands their values. right now you see the live picture, president obama's arrival in charlotte, north carolina. air force one scheduled to touch down soon. the president will deliver his big speech to the democratic national convention tomorrow night. as we've been discussing, there's been a big change in the venue for the speech. it's being moved from the outdoors of the bank of america stadium to indoors at the time warner cable arena because of the threat of storms. were press secretary ben labolt insisted it is because of bad weather and not as some republicans suggest the inability to fill the stadium. >> i think those are unfortunate comments. we had 19,000 people on the wait list in addition to the 65,000 people to ready to see the president. we looked at all the weather forecasts out this morning and

several of them predicted severe weather in the middle of the program tomorrow night. this was the moment when we needed to make a decision because we had to begin the site bid at the stadium. we had to make a final call to keep it at the arena. >> mark potter joins us live from outside the bank of america stadium in charlotte. mark, yesterday the campaign said rain or shine but also said if there was a safety issue, they would move it indoors. from the forecast and labolt's comments there was a concern regarding that. >> the yeah, and there's some precedent for that. the weather over the last couple days has been horrible. very fierce rains. we have had thunder and lightning. that was a big factor. in terms of the reaction to the news that the president is moving his speech from here to the arena, mixed emotions actually as they're starting to take down some of the flags at the stadium and move some of the equipment out already. mixed emotions because a lot of people stood in line for hours, sometimes an entire day. some overnight to get a ticket to see the president. they're not going to be able to

do that now as they move tim to a smaller venue. some people worked nine hours of community service to get that ticket and also disappointed. because of what we were just talking about, people are realistic. the weather has been bad here. and those safety kerns are understood by many of the people here who have lived through the last couple of days. today during the lunch hour, we had a chance to talk some of the people near the stadium. listen to what they had to say. >> i didn't have a ticket to his speech. but my sister and a couple of her friends all had tickets and saying they hope their choose their number for them to get in with. >> it was a little sadat first to get the news because we were pumped up to be there. and to be in person. because it's going to be so monumental. but to be able to watch him anywhere is going to be great. >> i think it was a very smart move for them to bring it

inside. it's safer for everybody. it won't be chaos if there's major storms. >> now, on another front, a security officials say by no longer having to sweep the stadium, that makes their job a lot easier. the security procedures in effect at the arena will remain in effect till friday morning, according to the secret service. >> mark, thank you very much. ahead of president obama's speech tomorrow night, the convention will hear tonight from former president bill clinton. of course, already starred in an obama campaign ad. >> this election to me is about which candidate is more likely to return us to full employment. this is a clear choice. the republican plan is to cut more taxes on upper income people and go back to deregulation. that got us in trouble in the first place. president obama has a plan to rebuild america from the ground up. >> the other headline, of course elizabeth warren who is seeking to win back ted kennedy's senate seat in massachusetts. joining me from charlotte, senior political editor mark

murray. there you have it, mark, the speeches last night. certainly explosive, deval patrick, julian castro, the first lady. here we are on night two with one man considered the best speaker perhaps just slightly behind the current president out of that party. >> the headliner is certainly bill clinton. top obama campaign officials end up saying clinton is going to make the argument that the policies he pursued in the 1990s, a little bit higher taxes for the wealthy, investments in education, infrastructure is exactly the approach president obama wants to take. when you dove tail that with what elizabeth warren is going to be talking about, the middle class, a big focus on leveling the playing field, you see the theme. that is a complete focus on the middle class and the democratic rebuttal to romney and ryan at their convention when it comes to the economy. >> how will this appeal, the theme of the night, i guess appeal more to the voters that

are struggling to support president obama, specifically speak of white working class voters even in many cases can, mark, you look at the polling, men? >> well, right. there's no doubt that bill clinton is going to try to appeal to some of the dem graphic groups quite aren't in the obama coalition. talking to a lot of what people are white voters, to people who might actually not have college degrees. that's going to be a big focus. one of the challenges for the obama campaign, tamron, is that the nfl football season clicks on. so a lot of the people who bill clinton might want to be talking to tonight, might be tuning into football instead. >> thank god for the cowboys and cable news because you can -- i just made that up. they don't say that. people will be able to hear his overall message over and over again with this 24-hour cable news world we live in. the bottom line, mark, the administration we saw the stumble over the weekend over whether your life is better four

years later. we know the mantra and we're expecting to hear that. but can bill clinton seal the deal perhaps in answering that and answering why this recovery has been slow? the same line we hear from republicans weigh hear it is because the president would not accept help or would not reach out to republicans to speed up this recovery. >> well, tamron, it is worth noting while republicans say that bill clinton ended up working with them for refrl reform, republicans are the ones who impeached him in the late 1990s and were against all -- in fact, obama campaign officials end up saying one of the themes of clinton's remarks will be talking about the same resistance that president obama had in the 1990s. there is a little bit of irony bill clinton speaking that president obama when he was campaigning in 2008 during the democratic primary season said

he wanted to turn the page on the clintons, on the bush years. yet, he is going back to the clinton years a little bit to help him push his economic message. >> i think the republicans agree the clinton years economically for this country certainly were not bad. air force one landing in charlotte. we're following breaking news. the president just arrived ahead of the dnc's speech tomorrow night. and those were live pictures we showed you just a short time ago. but things keep rolling and there are things today we thought you should know. fashion watchers are fashionistas today are giving high marks to the first lady's stylish look. wearing j crew pumps, a custom made sleeveless dress by tracie reese. reese has dressed the first lady before. that's tracie reese there, including when the first lady appeared on the cover of "eboni" magazine and this just in, the first lady's nail polish was the talk of the town. mrs. obama's nails were blueish

gray that complemented the hem of her dress. after much speculation, we can report to you that the obama campaign has just revealed the identity of the nail polish. it is artistic nail designs color gloss soak off gel in the color vogue. jot that down. i'm sure many ladies -- yes, we now know. and did you get a glimpse of this little cutie? there she is. that is 3-year-old daughter of julian castro. when the camera caught karina, she was ready for a close-up, flipping that hair back and forth after seeing herself on the big screen. work it. tonight's headliners will compete as mentioned with nfl for the attention span of americans. the first game of the season between the giants and the cowboys was originally scheduled for tomorrow. it was moved up to tonight so it would not conflict with the president's speech. as first read points out, democrats worry the game may

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it's not a dream. america's natural gas... putting us in control of our energy future, now. bluish. tonight as mentioned all eyes will be on former president clinton's speech but other issues will also take center stage. chief among them, women's issues. david gregory, the moderator of "meet the press" joins us with a special interview with one of the featured speakers women's rights activist sandra fluke. >> talk to us about what you want to speak to the hall about tonight. >> what i want to make clear is the choice we have facing us this november, the choice between mr. romney and mr. ryan and between president obama. i think the best way to do that is to talk about their records, especially their records on issues that matter to women on women's health, on equal pay and on violence against women. you know, once that record is laid out, the choice becomes really clear. >> talk specifically about where you think the republican party

would deny some of these choices for women in terms of health. >> yeah, yeah. well, i think it's really important to acknowledge that they've already tried to. they've cosponsored these bills, they voted for these bills so the only thing standing in the way of women being denied this access to health care is them having a president in office, having a majority. that's why this election really matters for women. specifically, the things that they have attempted to take away, our access to abortion, clearly, representative ryan cosponsored a bill that would have eliminated access to abortion entirely. he also cosponsored a bill that would criminalize certain types of birth control that are very common and that would make aspects of in vitro fertilization criminalized. it's very out of step. >> let's be clear. governor romney's running mate. governor romney, while he is, you know, wants to restrict

abortion rights certainly has not shared all of those views, believes even beyond what the republican platform stands for on abortion. doesn't believe in federal funding for planned parenthood but doesn't mean it should go away. is there some danger in overstating the case for romney by you and others. >> in terms of planned parenthood, he does believe he wants to cut funding. >> the federal level. >> and that would cut funding for cancer screenings, for contraception and all of the other services that planned parenthood provides which don't include funding for abortion. >> a lot of republicans say look, this is a false choice. this idea that this is a restriction of access, this is more of a restriction of the federal role. this is also a role of government question. why is it so critical for you that the federal government continue to play the role at this level for all of these women's health questions? >> i think what's important is that this is a constitutional right. when we talk about the access to

abortion. that is a federal government role. we want to make sure women in every state have access to the health care they need. your access to health care shouldn't depend on how work for or where you go to school or whoo state you live in. i want to come back to mr. romney's position on abortion on women's access to health care because he's had a lot of different positions on that question. and i understand what he's saying right now. but he's also said that he would be delighted to sign a bill that would eliminate all access to abortion. and he has taken extreme positions. he hasn't condemned the republican party platform. >> that's not quite fair. he said he doesn't agree with the platform that he does support instances of exceptions. >> after he said that he did support it and agreed with that plank in the platform. this is my problem. you know, he is not taking a strong moral stand, and from my perspective, these are clear moral questions that you feel one way or the other. and you don't change your position depending on the

political winds. >> a lot of these questions of women's health and abortion and other social issues obviously are motivating to a lot of women. >> yeah. >> particularly in the democratic party but the republican party, as well. >> yes. >> it was interesting on "meet the press" last sunday, carly fiorina, a republican, she really took issue with democrats treating women like a special interest group saying look, we're pigeon holing all women into these issues like it's just about apportion and women's health and that's the only way they vote and it's insulting to treat them as a special interest group. do you understand what she's saying? >> i don't agree with the criticism. the president has said he realizes women aren't a special interest group. they're half this country. i know not all women are going to agree on these issues but as i've been traveling around to a lot of swing states, i'm hearing from women who are republican women as well as democratic women that they're concerned about them. we know they take them into account when they vote. of course, women vote on a variety of other issues, as

well. >> what's this past year been like for you? has this kindled an interest in politics and political activism that you'll continue now that you're out of school? >> it's been an eventful year. it has made more clear to me what an impact the political process can have on the issues that i care about. because i've worked on issues of women's health and these policy questions for a long time. but it's becoming very clear what the political process can impact those. so yeah, i think i'll continue to speak out and try to influence these positions to help the women i care about. >> activism or seeking office? >> right now, i'm focused on this election and i'm not on the ballot this time. so you know, maybe some day i'll think abo that, but right now i'm just focusing on president obama. >> you can see moref david's interview on "meet the press" blog, it's "meet the press" nbc.com. in tomorrow's press pass, david interviews former white house deputy press secretary bill burton, co-founder of the pro

obama super pac. and up next, our gut check. do you think michelle obama's speech was the best speech ever given by a first lady. you can join the conversation and let us know your thoughts on facebook we're at facebook.com/newsnation. the capital one cash rewards card gives you a 50% annual bonus. and everyone likes 50% more [ russian accent ] rubles. eh, eheh, eh, eh. [ brooklyn accent ] 50% more simoleons. [ western accent ] 50% more sawbucks. ♪ [ maine accent ] 50% more clams. it's a lobster, either way. [ male announcer ] the capital one cash rewards card. with a 50% annual cash bonus, it's the card for people who like more cash. [ italian accent ] 50% more dough! what's in your wallet?

we are back with breaking news this hour from charlotte. this is video just coming in of president obama arriving in charlotte for his big dnc speech tomorrow night. and time now for the "news nation" gut check. the first lady's powerful speech last night left many seasoned political observers in awe. some saying it is the first speech ever by a first lady. here's a sample of the comments floating around. democratic strategist so lynn dap lake called it one of the

best speeches i've ever heard and peter from stone hill college said the speech will go down as a truly great moment in political convention history because it transended the convention hall. republicans praised the first lady, as well. just take a listen to what.former rnc chair michael steele said on "morning joe." >> i thought she hit it out of the park. i said it was the best speech, period. and i thought that she did a phenomenal job of laying out the argument for her husband's second term. >> so what does your gut tell you? do you agree with those who say her speech was the best ever? go to facebook.com/newsnation to cast that vote. that does it for this edition of "news nation." tomorrow i'll talk to philadelphia mayor michael nutter. "the cycle" is up next. [ male announcer ] it's simple physics...

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>> it is 3:00 here in charlotte

at the democratic national convention. i'm steve kornacki. for all of you asking, can we get the bill, he's on the way. bill clinton is taking center stage tonight. what's he going to say? a lot of democrats aren't sure. >> i'm krystal ball we're are with the former head of the rnc, michael steele joins us ahead. >> michelle obama was incredible last night. you know what else was incredible? the way the democrats owned marriage equality. >> i'm s.e. cupp. we're so forward looking we're already thinking 2016. can you say castro rubio? >> all that, plus i'll try to contain my excitement about bill clinton tonight. who are we kidding? i can't wait. fortunately, you don't have to wait for the cycle". it starts right now. be